The government on Thursday announced an ambitious scheme to provide social security to eight million employees insured under Employees State Insurance Corporation and their families.
'Bachpan se hi mujhe sabki madad karna pasand hai,' says the fearless lad who says he will readily risk his life again if the occasion so demanded.
The scheme, which will be effective from July 1, 2019 would benefit 36 million employees and 1.28 million employers. The ESI Act applies to factories with 10 or more workers and provides for medical, cash, maternity, disability and dependent benefits to employees drawing a salary of up to Rs 21,000 per month.
Ushering in a big wave of reforms by implementing the four labour codes, setting up the national social security fund to cover over 38 crore informal sector workers and improving the ease of doing business will top the agenda of the labour ministry in the New Year. In a major move, the ministry launched the e-Shram portal on August 26, 2021 for creating a national database of over 38 crore informal sector workers. It will help the government to ensure last-mile delivery of benefits of various social security schemes to the informal-sector workers.
As of last year, India had 1.3 hospital beds per 1,000 people.
Sidhu Humanabade was passing by when he saw smoke billowing out from the upper floors of the ESIC Kamgar Hospital in Andheri. He left his bike and asked the firemen if he could join them in the rescue operation.
The government on Wednesday decided to give Rs 3,737 crore bonus to 30.67 lakh central government employees to encourage spending during the festival season and add to demand in the economy.
A large percentage of total tourism business activity of India, which is estimated at $28 billion+ in forex and upwards of Rs 2 lakh crore in domestic tourism activity will be at economic risk through the year.
In the latest draft of the Code on Social Security Bill, 2019, the government has decided to stick to the current thresholds for providing social security benefits to workers by industry.
Telangana's Mrinal Kutteri, Delhi's Tanmay Gupta and Maharashtra's Karthika G Nair shared the top rank, scoring 720 out of 720. Eight transgender candidates have also cleared the examination.
"Altogether 176 persons, including three firemen, are now being treated in city hospitals," an official said.
The Prime Minister's Office has decided to set up a panel, led by former chief statistician T C A Anant, to deliberate on whether the enterprise-level quarterly data, which is released by the labour bureau, should be discontinued.
'The top 10 industries encompass 84% of the total new payrolls, indicating that industry is coming on steam after the initial hiccups following GST,' say Soumya Kanti Ghosh and Pulak Ghosh.
A week-old baby girl succumbed to her smoke inhalation injuries.
Following suggestion from Minister for Roads Nitin Gadkari, Centre seeks ideas from IRDAI and General Insurance Council on feasibility of providing insurance cover for retrenchment.
Hemant Shivsaran lists the number of projects the Modi government has announced since August to woo Gujarat voters.
The recent protests by employees of Urban Company and the case of a a Zomato delivery executive who died in a road accident point to the severely straitened condition of gig workers during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Budget 2021 had promised several measures to help the cause of gig economy workers, but most of them are yet to see the light of day. Even after a year, the country's gig workers continue to be without any social security cover or a minimum wage guarantee. "In Budget 2021, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced that the government is looking toward including migrant and gig workers for social security benefits," says Srinivas Kotni, managing partner, Lexport, a consulting firm. Parliament had passed the Code on Wages in 2019 and Code on Industrial Relations, Social Security and Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions in 2020.
The sub-group constituted by the Supreme Court to audit Oxygen consumption in hospitals in national capital during the second wave of COVID-19 said that the Delhi government 'exaggerated' the consumption of oxygen and made a claim of 1140 MT, four times higher than the formula for bed capacity requirement of 289 MT.
The Delhi government has ordered a magisterial probe into the incident.
As per the recommendations of the 2nd National Commission on Labour, the ministry is codifying existing 44 central labour laws into four codes by simplifying, amalgamating and rationalising the relevant provisions of the legislations.
Every organisation will also prioritise the areas requiring mandatory inspection, and the cases forwarded by the CAIU will be on data and evidence basis.
A report of five-member sub-group constituted by the Supreme Court to audit oxygen use in hospitals in the national capital during the second wave in April-May said the Delhi government "exaggerated" consumption of oxygen and made a claim of 1,140 MT, four times higher than the formula for bed capacity requirement of 289 MT.
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Friday claimed there is no report approved by the Supreme Court-appointed Oxygen Audit Committee about Delhi exaggerating its oxygen requirement by four times during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Centre has come up with a scheme of financial aid to private sector for employing disabled people.
In a bid to earn higher return for its 40 million subscribers, the country's biggest provident fund EPFO is exploring the possibility of investing a small portion of its assets in equities.
According to the law, the contribution "should not be more than 5 per cent of the amount paid to gig workers. The government is likely to start seeking contribution from gig companies towards the fund from April 1, 2021.
The payroll estimates, released by the EPFO based on its enrolment, threw up some contrasting trend between September 2017 and February 2018.
'The situation is so bad that they are now sleeping on bridges or footpaths.' 'Therefore, they want to go and die before their parents or wife in case they get infected with COVID-19.' 'Workers don't want to die a dog's death in cities.'
Attacking Bharatiya Janata Party and its PM candidate Narendra Modi, Congress President Sonia Gandhi on accused them of indulging in divisive politics by "sowing seeds of poison" (zeher ki kheti) and instigating violence.
The move can help mop up about Rs 1.2 lakh every day for the purpose.
The Union home ministry and the labour ministry have asked state governments to coordinate with the chief labour commissioner's (CLC's) office to give a comprehensive data of all the migrant workers by April 11.
Workers being laid off will be entitled to full wages of 45 days for every year of service.
In January, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation had asked the field staff to ensure the collection of data in respect of member joining on or after March 1, on a monthly basis and in respect of existing members by June 30, 2013.
'It is common knowledge that cash is anonymous.' 'When demonetisation was implemented, one of the intended objectives was to put identity on the cash holdings in the economy.' 'With the return of Rs 15.28 lakh crore in the formal banking system, the almost entire cash holding of the economy now has an address.' 'It is no more anonymous,' says Arun Jaitley.
A government panel examined the records of employees surveyed by Labour Bureau's quarterly enterprises surveys and mapped it with the EPFO's subscribers and found "unexplained variations" between the two.
It's high time we now turn the popular question on its head -- when there is no growth in jobs for several years, how can the real GDP grow at 7 per cent per annum, says Mahesh Vyas.
Some of the violations that will lead to community service include failure to pay social security contribution of workers, maintain records, furnish information to inspectors, pay gratuity to workers, provide crche facility and medical pay, and retrenching women workers during maternity leave.
The party's performance in the assembly polls in the state -- which is the most populous and hence sends maximum number of MPs to the Lok Sabha -- will have a bearing on its future prospects on the national level.
The abolition of wealth tax is again a welcome step.
